1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a garage door operating system and a method of operating a garage door. In another aspect the present invention relates to a garage door operating system which generates a warning when the garage door is not fully closed and a method of operating a garage door in which a warning is generated when the garage door is not fully closed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Very commonly, a garage door may be operated into an open or closed position by a motorized system which may be activated by a nearby positioned switch, or by a remote controller. A normal cycle of operation is generally as follows.
Upon desiring to leave the residence, a homeowner will first open the garage door either from a switch positioned inside to the garage, or by using a remote controller that is generally left inside the homeowner's automobile. With the garage door in the open position the homeowner is able to drive the automobile out of the garage. Once the automobile is clear of the garage door, the homeowner will then activate the garage door controller to close the garage door.
As a safety feature, most garage door systems, upon engagement with an object, such as a toy, a child or a pet, will stop regardless or reverse the direction of travel of the garage door. This safety feature may also be activated by a malfunction in the travel of the garage door along the track, for example if the door "hangs up" or otherwise becomes stuck. This safety feature may even also be activated by a sensor detecting an object in the travel path of the door, by either a motion detector type sensor, or by the object interrupting a light, laser or infrared beam.
Herein lies the problem. Many homeowners are able to quickly back out of their driveway, hit the remote controller to close the garage door, and be on their merry way in their automobile before ever seeing the garage door come to a fully closed position. The homeowner is then left to wonder, "did my garage door close fully, or did it encounter an object in its travel path on the way down and either stop or return to the open position?" Either of these positions create a security breach of at least the garage if not of the entire residence.
In other instances, the homeowner absentmindedly backs out without activating the garage door remote controller, and while believing that the garage door was closed since that is the homeowner's usual habit, has a nagging suspicion that maybe it was not closed, leaving the homeowner to wonder, "did I remember to close my garage door, and even if I did, did it close fully or did it encounter an object in its travel path on the way down and either stop or return to the open position?". Again, either of these positions create a security breach of at least the garage if not of the entire residence.
The applicant is aware of various patents directed to garage door systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,289,350, issued Dec. 6, 1966 to Moody, discloses an extremely light weight and mechanically simple mechanism for the mechanical opening and/or closing of a garage door. This garage door system includes a safety system whereby the full power of the motor will be applied to open the door and only a fraction of the power thereof will be required and applied where any obstruction is encountered during closing movement of the door before the power is disconnected.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,319,696, issued May 16, 1967 to Wiegan, discloses an automatic overhead door opening system. As a safety feature, when the garage door hits an obstruction going up or down or reaches its upper or lower limit, safety means are provided to activate a limit switch and stop the motor.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,436,892, issued Apr. 8, 1969 to Stansberry, discloses an automatic door lock actuator system. Stansberry notes that most power operated garage door closures are belt or chain driven and include a friction clutch to allow drive slippage if the door encounters some unforeseen obstacle in its travel. Stansberry further notes that such slippage also allows the garage door to be forced open by an authorized person and requires the use of some type of separate locking means.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,695,332, issued Oct. 3, 1972 to Bahnsen, discloses a garage door operating mechanism which permits the door to return to a closed position under the urging of gravity. As a safety mechanism should the garage door become stuck or hung-up on some object during its downward travel, the motor will continue running and rotating a reel in its unwinding direction until the reel is rotated through a sufficient angle to actuate a limit switch.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,282,337, issued Feb. 1, 1994 to Duhame, et al, discloses a garage door operator with a pedestrian light control. The improvement of this invention appears to be a light which is turned on for a brief period by the garage door controller each time the operator motor is operated. Furthermore, the pedestrian door to the garage is equipped with a magnetic switch which signals the controller when the pedestrian door is opened, causing the light to be turned on for the preset period.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,561, issued Jul. 9, 1996 to Forehand IV, discloses a garage door security system for preventing the unauthorized manual opening of a garage door.
While the various prior art garage door operating systems and methods of operating a garage door provide for safety mechanisms in which when the downwardly traveling garage door encounters an obstruction will either stop or reverse the travel of the garage door, none of these provide to a operator operating a remote garage door controller, an indication of such stopping or reversal of travel, nor provide an indication that the door is open.
Thus there is a need in the art for a garage door operating system and method of operating the garage door.
There is another need in the art for a garage door operating system and method of operating the garage door which will provide an indicator signal that the garage door is open.
There is even another need in the art for a garage door operating system and method of operating the garage door which will provide an indicator signal if the garage door stops, or is reversed in its downward travel path.
These and other needs of the prior art will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon review of this patent application including the specification drawing and claims.